The Auburn football program hosted a number of midweek visitors over the past few days, including 4-star defensive lineman Preston Carey. The DL took his official visit to the Plains and got to spend quality time with the coaching staff, especially his would-be position coach, defensive line coach Vontrell King-Williams.
Carey is already plenty familiar with Auburn's campus as his sister is a graduate of the school, and she advised him to "embrace the family" on his trip.
"I got really good vibes from the whole staff, like I felt like I could be in my house with these people who felt like family," Carey said, per Auburn Rivals. "My sister texted me last night, like embrace the family vibe, so that's definitely something I'm doing. It was great to talk X's and O's with Coach [Vontrell King-Williams], just talk about how I fit into his scheme and how I could play as a freshman."
Carey is ranked as the No. 282 overall prospect and the No. 34 defensive lineman in the recruiting class of 2026, and he is ranked as the No. 45 recruit out of the state of Florida. Though he is a New York native, he plays high school ball at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.
He has taken official visits to Auburn and Georgia and will officially visit Alabama, USC, Florida and Rutgers before making his final decision on June 30. As for what matters the most when it comes to choosing a school, the defensive lineman is looking for a place where he can leave a legacy.
"I think just making a decision that overall, it checks every box," Carey said. "I can sit down after I've made the decision in my head and still feel good about it 30 minutes later. You know what I mean? It's a huge decision for me and I don't want to have to flip or transfer when I get there or anything. I want to be able to go into a school and carve out a legacy."